The Circle of Sappho (29 page)

I will also visit London and my father's graveside; whatever he may have done in his life he was my father and I loved him. He died so I could live.

Earlier I heard the sound of a violin in the street below. It was a familiar tune called ‘A Begging I Shall Go', which I have heard many times at the Fountain Inn with George and Bridges. I looked out of the window and to my surprise saw Rosie and Bridges. I waved my candle back and forth several times and having seen me, they stopped outside the window. Bridges waved, while Rosie nodded her head appreciatively before they strolled off towards Pulteney Bridge, the music gradually fading until silence replaced it in the street once more.

As pressure for Henry Addington to resign as prime minister increased, William Pitt the Younger, his illustrious predecessor, at last added his voice to a growing number of dissenters. With the King's latest illness and the possibility of his dying becoming all too apparent, the former first minister realised he had to take action. Pitt began to make significant noises towards the latter's replacement. On St George's Day he rose in the House of Commons to ridicule the government's latest attempt at patching up its military policy, and two days later gave an epoch-defining speech which he believed encapsulated and therefore focused the attention of the House on what was the real issue at stake.

The consequences of these speeches were that the government literally collapsed and Henry Addington resigned. The King, now thankfully recovering from his latest bout of illness, tried to convince his prime minister to recede his resignation but when he realised it was a lost cause, called for William Pitt the Younger to form a new government.

Across the Channel another great change was at hand. At the very moment Pitt resumed his prime ministerial seat in England, the First Consul, Napoleon Bonaparte, was declared Emperor of France. The Frenchman (although born on the island of Corsica) had been able to elevate himself to this position through his exposure of the plot to assassinate him, which had seen various conspirators, in collusion with the British Government and its secret service, imprisoned. By giving this failed attempt the widest publicity, while showing himself as an innocent victim, Napoleon was able to gain the support of hitherto Republicans, who subsequently helped sweep him into this powerful and now unassailable position; culminating in his crowning in the cathedral at Notre Dame de Paris.

If there was one mistake the Emperor of France made, however, it was carrying out the execution of the Viscount Duc d'Enghien. As Lady Harriet's boss had rightfully concluded, the killing of this young Bourbon prince and legitimate heir to the French crown shocked Europe. As horrified as the English government were at this action, they were able to play the situation to their advantage. From then on the young conqueror, as Napoleon saw himself, could not set himself up as a law-abiding citizen and distance himself from the suspicions of Jacobean traits he might have. A consequence of these events in France was that the plan involving families going across the Channel was cancelled. The parents of Grace Templeton though, even if the plan had continued, had already been excused from duty, at least temporarily, so they could mourn the loss of their only daughter.

As for Charles Moorhouse, he would play no part in Pitt's newly formed government, or indeed any subsequent ones, having failed to become elected Member of Parliament for Knaresborough. The ‘owner' of the borough, the Duke of Devonshire, ultimately decided not to switch allegiances, thus remaining Whig, replacing the ill-fated James Hare with one of his own relatives, twenty-one-year-old William Cavendish of Savile Row, Middlesex, who, on assuming his seat, voted steadily against the administrations of Addington and then Pitt ‘both by family and principles'.

Three months after receiving the letters back from Swann, Moorhouse indulged himself in another indiscretion and became a victim of blackmail once more. This time, however, his supporters deserted him and without their money to help pay off the blackmailers, the scandal became public and he lost not only any political ambitions but his family too; his pregnant wife returning to her parental home with their young son, resulting in his father-in-law issuing a challenge to a duel. Moorhouse did not live long enough to take part: riding to Hampstead Heath, having moved to London after the scandal became public, he put a bullet through his head.

The day Charles Moorhouse had taken his own life – Saturday, 23rd July 1804 – also saw the anniversary of the failed rebellion in Dublin, led by Robert Emmett. Although there were concerns – mainly in the Alien Office – over the possibility of another attempt, the day passed uneventfully. Lady Harriet knew nothing would happen, mainly because the ‘grapevine' she had established had been quiet and she would have heard of anything being planned. This was no time to be relieved, however, as she knew that if there was to be an uprising, it would surely come on the actual anniversary of Emmet's execution; it was therefore to September that Lady Harriet now looked and to which all preparations were aimed.

As the summer progressed, the details of the wedding between Miss Mary Gardiner and Mr Edmund Lockhart were finalised. The ceremony, set for the 27th of October, was, as far as the two main participants were aware, going ahead, although unseen forces behind the scenes were working to make certain it did not happen.

As news of the school deaths eventually reached parents, gossip spread like wildfire. Despite the fact the school claimed they were tragic accidents, the sheer fact that three pupils and a teacher had died was enough to convince parents not to let their daughters return after the break. The consequence was that by the time the following academic term was due to start, Catherine Jennings found her school without pupils and short of fees. Lady Harriet offered to help in the short-term but the principal understood the long-term reality of the situation and regretfully closed Grove House School. Catherine Jennings subsequently became the main speaker for an organisation calling for the equal education of women, which Lady Harriet was in the process of creating.

Although the events at the school eventually faded from public memory, those who had been directly involved, including Swann, never forgot the Circle of Sappho.

DAVID LASSMAN is a scriptwriter, author, journalist and lecturer. He has appeared many times on television and radio, including BBC's
The One Show
, Radio Four's
The Today Programme
,
News at Ten
and
Good Morning America
. He currently teaches at the City of Bath College and for Frome Community Education. David was born in Bath and now lives in Frome.

Now a full-time writer, TERENCE JAMES is an award-winning editor (
Murder of Shirley Banks
,
Dangerous Music
) at ITV. Throughout an illustrious career he has held various roles on prestigious television programmes such as
Man Alive
(BBC) and
The Avengers
(ITV) as well as feature films at Elstree, Pinewood and Shepperton studios. He was born in London but has lived in Bath for more than forty years.

First published in 2016

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